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Rape charge dropped against USC student after evidence of consent presented

N

norm9

Member
From the LA Times-http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-usc-campus-dorm-charges-dropped-20170731-story.html

Prosecutors will no longer pursue a case against a USC student accused of raping a fellow undergraduate after a judge’s decision that there was not enough evidence to send the case to trial, the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office said Monday.

Charges will not be refiled against 20-year-old Armaan Karim Premjee, who was accused of sexually assaulting a 19-year-old student in her campus dorm on April 1, said Shiara Davila-Morales, a spokeswoman for the district attorney’s office. Premjee’s preliminary hearing was held in Los Angeles Superior Court last week.
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Premjee was charged in May with rape by use of drugs and sexual penetration by a foreign object.

On Monday, Premjee’s attorney, Harland Braun, said the judge tossed out the case after the defense presented video evidence that showed consent.
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Braun said Premjee and the woman were at Banditos Tacos & Tequila, near the USC campus, that night in April and that security footage showed them waiting for an Uber ride.

“There was a camera outside that captured the girl signaling to her friend that she was going to have intercourse with my client,” Braun said. The woman, he said, made motions with her hands that indicated sexual activity.

“There could never be any better evidence of there being consent,” Braun said. He added: “She was the aggressor.”

Premjee told the Times that he met the woman for the first time that night and that they had consensual sex. He said the woman made sexually-suggestive hand gestures to her friend twice behind his back.
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“I’m very relieved,” he said of the judge’s decision. “I’ve always maintained a lot of faith in the justice system.”

Premjee said the publicity of the case has been “very stressful” and that he plans to return to USC in the fall. He will be entering his junior year and is studying business administration, he said.

Prosecutors had said the woman’s roommate walked in during the alleged attack.
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"I was just very relieved that there was a video to prove it because without a video, I don't know what I would have done," Premjee said.
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Premjee added that he never thought the woman was incapable of giving consent when they were both intoxicated at the bar.

Other evidence in his favor included an Uber driver saying the woman was "jumping all over" Premjee in the vehicle's back seat, Braun said.

Another surveillance video shows the woman checking Premjee into her dorm. The 20-year-old business major said he is now focused on his family and future.

If convicted as charged, Premjee could have faced a maximum of 10 years in prison.
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Video footage of them getting busy at the restaurant at this link- http://abc7.com/rape-charge-dropped-against-usc-student/2265406/

Really scary stuff. Among other questions I have is- what did the roommate see if he came home during it?

Faith in the justice system only if there's video footage, and even then I'm not so sure, if old.
 
M

Mammoth Jones

Member
I wasn't there so I can't say one way or another but if one goes by the evidence they can't come to any other conclusion but to not prosecute.
 
F

FuriousOne

Member
One of the reasons I didn't engage in casual sex as a youth....only with long term relationships. Shit can turn in an instant.
 
I

Irishmantis

Member
It doesn't fully mean he didnt do it but If I'm given him the benefit of doubt, imagine all the other people who falsely accused and are now doing life.
 
Dude Abides

Dude Abides

Banned
Can't tell anything from the video on the news. Now that charges have been dropped there's no reason to pixel out her face.

Dude wore a flannel to court. I'd give him three months for that.
 
B

bionic77

Member
This is horrible and I am glad she did not get away with it.

But I wish there was half as much focus on rape accusations as there was on false accusations.

It creates a false impression to a lot of men in this country, when in reality rape is far too common and rarely is anyone punished for it.
 
Jinfash

Jinfash

needs 2 extra inches
I'm unable to watch the video, but this is disturbing. But this seems like another case that undermines actual rape victim and legitimate cases. It almost ruined this guy's life. What the fuck is wrong with people?!
 
Dice//

Dice//

Banned
Chappelle-Show-Love-Contract.jpg


CHAPPELLE_02_0204_LOVECONTRACT_640x360.jpg


Be protected, get your partner to sign shit. (I'm only half joking because these false rape accusations are absolutely awful and a terrifying prospect and a terrible thing to lie about).
 
D

Dyle

Member
Ummm, this doesn't necessarily prove anything. Consent is something to be continually reaffirmed and can be removed at any time, just because she consented at one moment doesn't mean she consented later in her dorm where the alleged misconduct occurred. The evidence as it appears here doesn't seem to warrant tossing out the case yet, unless it directly contradicts her testimony, which the article doesn't mention. Without more information about what happened in her dorm, this doesn't appear to provide evidence that her claims were clearly false.

If the claim is false, then shame on her, but the evidence presented in the article doesn't convince me given that nothing is given about what happened in her dorm where the actual misconduct was supposed to take place.
 
Sunster

Sunster

Member
she still could have revoked consent. drunkenly signalling with your hands is not a contract signing. but we don't know what really happened, never will.
 
T

TheBryanJZX90

Member
whitehawk said:
It can? Because claims of intoxication?
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Sure it can even without any issues of intoxication. Someone could be grabby at a restaurant, in a car, even at the entrance to a dorm room, and still have second thoughts about actually doing the deed at the last minute.
 
S

Shadowhelper

Banned
I'm guessing the victim probably believes she was raped because she was too drunk. The video shows everyone pretty normal while they are wasted.

The question is if the dude was as wasted and how much that matters? I'm guessing she was pretty wasted. It's impossible to know how much he took advantage of that if at all, and if that even would be taking advantage, different people would say different things.
 
L

Lambtron

Unconfirmed Member
Lonewulfeus said:
You'd have to prove intent, I think it's more likely that she really believes she was raped. Evidence shows that she was fairly aggressive but that doesn't mean she remembers any of it.
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If she was too intoxicated to remember giving consent, she was not able to give consent in the first place.
 
C

Catman

Banned
DOWN said:
What were her claims? FYI consent can be revoked.
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I think I'm just gonna cut off my penis at this point. I just hate this double standard of women not being accountable if they're drunk. Woman has sex while intoxicated, she was raped. Man has sex while intoxicated, he's the rapist. It's like men are supposed to be accountable while drunk, but women aren't.
 
LordOfChaos

LordOfChaos

Member
This is why universities should wait for the actual law to investigate in cases like these rather than reacting faster for PR.
 
C

crisdecuba

Member
Dyle said:
Ummm, this doesn't necessarily prove anything. Consent is something to be continually reaffirmed and can be removed at any time, just because she consented at one moment doesn't mean she consented later in her dorm where the alleged misconduct occurred. The evidence as it appears here doesn't seem to warrant tossing out the case yet, unless it directly contradicts her testimony, which the article doesn't mention. Without more information about what happened in her dorm, this doesn't appear to provide evidence that her claims were clearly false.

If the claim is false, then shame on her, but the evidence presented in the article doesn't convince me given that nothing is given about what happened in her dorm where the actual misconduct was supposed to take place.
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I agree, but with this as part of the evidence, it helped make it not possible to prove him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Does that make sense? There is also not enough here to try to go after her for a supposedly false claim.
 
N

NYCmetsfan

Banned
Zombie James said:
What charges are usually laid against the accuser in a situation like this? The article doesn't say.
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None?

There's no proof she lied. Just no evidence to prosecute him.

If they were to prosecute a false rape charge (they never do) they usually go for something like make a false statement to police but that's hard to prove because she could forget, have a different memory, etc. Its next to impossible to prove there was intentional lying so the case will likely just go away.

He could take her to civil court but then he'd have to prove with a preponderance of evidence that there was no rape which seems hard to do since nobody was in the room (except the person who walked in).
 
Sunster

Sunster

Member
Catman said:
I think I'm just gonna cut off my penis at this point. I just hate this double standard of women not being accountable if they're drunk. Woman has sex while intoxicated, she was raped. Man has sex while intoxicated, he's the rapist. It's like men are supposed to be accountable while drunk, but women aren't.
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why is getting verbal consent so hard for you?
 
Z

Ziltoidia 9

Member
Lonewulfeus said:
You'd have to prove intent, I think it's more likely that she really believes she was raped. Evidence shows that she was fairly aggressive but that doesn't mean she remembers any of it.
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I believe this is what it comes down to. I sound like an over protective old person ( I guess i've aged alot), but people need to start making better decisions in terms of drinking/drugs if they were involved. Both parties are going to be effected by the substances. Exoecially at that age and the new found freedom of college.

Sunster said:
why is getting verbal consent so hard for you?
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Only way to fix this is to outlaw sex while drunk.
 
DOWN

DOWN

Banned
whitehawk said:
It can? Because claims of intoxication?
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Consent is not a one and done. Just seeing her interested at some point doesn’t prove that she was up for it all along or that he did not take unwanted actions when they were in private. If at any time someone decides they want to stop or don’t want whatever you’re doing, you don’t get to just continue and assume it’s fine.

That said, both being intoxicated changes the perspectives as well and neither can really provide consent.
 
L

Lonewulfeus

Member
Catman said:
I think I'm just gonna cut off my penis at this point. I just hate this double standard of women not being accountable if they're drunk. Woman has sex while intoxicated, she was raped. Man has sex while intoxicated, he's the rapist. It's like men are supposed to be accountable while drunk, but women aren't.
Click to expand...

It's impossible to make this argument without sounding all MRA-ey, but yea the double standard is kinda shitty.
 
B

bionic77

Member
Dyle said:
Ummm, this doesn't necessarily prove anything. Consent is something to be continually reaffirmed and can be removed at any time, just because she consented at one moment doesn't mean she consented later in her dorm where the alleged misconduct occurred. The evidence as it appears here doesn't seem to warrant tossing out the case yet, unless it directly contradicts her testimony, which the article doesn't mention. Without more information about what happened in her dorm, this doesn't appear to provide evidence that her claims were clearly false.

If the claim is false, then shame on her, but the evidence presented in the article doesn't convince me given that nothing is given about what happened in her dorm where the actual misconduct was supposed to take place.
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While you are right, I would assume that the video did not match up with parts or all of her story.

Once you lose credibility it is very hard to get it back.
 
C

Catman

Banned
Sunster said:
why is getting verbal consent so hard for you?
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I'm not really a swinger, and don't have casual sex, but it just terrifies me and makes me feel like I should never have sex if I fear that I'll be accused of rape because someone changes their mind after the fact or something.
 
A

Anton Sugar

Member
Catman said:
I think I'm just gonna cut off my penis at this point. I just hate this double standard of women not being accountable if they're drunk. Woman has sex while intoxicated, she was raped. Man has sex while intoxicated, he's the rapist. It's like men are supposed to be accountable while drunk, but women aren't.
Click to expand...

The fuck? You can be 100% sober and decide "nope, I don't want to do this". They could have been having consensual sex that became rape if one party decided they didn't want it.

How hard is this to understand?

The problem is, it's very difficult to prove or provide evidence of revocation.
 
F

FiggyCal

Banned
Catman said:
I think I'm just gonna cut off my penis at this point. I just hate this double standard of women not being accountable if they're drunk. Woman has sex while intoxicated, she was raped. Man has sex while intoxicated, he's the rapist. It's like men are supposed to be accountable while drunk, but women aren't.
Click to expand...

I think he's saying she may have consented then, but then later changed her mind off-camera at some point.

But, yeah false rape accusations are a damn shame since so many victims are already being ignored or are afraid to come out.
 
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